It was a quiet winter meetings for the Marlins. What to expect as offseason continues.
Major League Baseball’s annual winter meetings have come and gone, and the Miami Marlins’ roster looks more or less the same as it did when team executives arrived in San Diego on Sunday.
The Marlins made minor moves during the four days. They signed former Yankees prospect Gosuke Katoh to a minor-league deal and began to overhaul their bullpen by waiving reliever Tyler Kinley, selecting Washington Nationals prospect Sterling Sharp in the Rule 5 Draft and agreeing to a deal with former Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Yimi Garcia pending a physical.
Talks have been ongoing, with Marlins president of baseball operations meeting with numerous agents in his suite at San Diego’s Manhattan Grand Hyatt throughout their time on the West Coast.
Outside of the Garcia agreement, which surfaced Thursday, the deals have yet to come.
“It’s just staying the course and seeing what you can do,” Hill said. “We’re talking to bats and we’re talking to bullpen arms. They all go at their own pace and speed.”
The good thing for the Marlins: The season isn’t here just yet.
Pitchers and catchers don’t report until Feb. 12, and the first full-squad practice at their spring training complex in Jupiter isn’t until Feb. 17.
“We report to Jupiter in two months,” Hill said, “so a lot’s going to happen between now and then. It’s not relegated to these four days when we’re in San Diego that we complete our offseason.”
Here’s what the Marlins still hope to accomplish between now and the start of the season.
Find that next impact bat
The Marlins have already added two position players to their roster by acquiring versatile infielder Jonathan Villar and first baseman Jesus Aguilar.
Ideally, they want to bringing in one more offensive-minded player before the offseason comes to an end.
With the way the roster is constructed and a potential logjam already surfacing in the infield, the team’s most likely direction is to acquire an outfielder. And considering the Marlins don’t want to trade starting pitching unless it’s absolutely necessary, free agency is the expected route.
Two names that stick out as possible targets: Kole Calhoun, Avisail Garcia and Corey Dickerson.
Calhoun, a 32-year-old left-handed outfielder, is coming off a career year with the Los Angeles Angels, setting single-season personal bests with 33 home runs, 92 runs scored and a .467 slugging mark. He also drove in 74 runs and had a .232 batting averages.
Garcia, 28, is a career .273 hitter with 96 home runs through 763 MLB games. Garcia had a .282 batting average with a career-high 20 home runs to go along with 72 RBI and 61 runs scored in his lone season with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2019 and has hit at least 18 home runs in each of his past three seasons.
Dickerson, 30, has hit .286 with 115 home runs and 370 RBI through 776 career games. He split time last season with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Phillies, hitting a collective .304 with 12 homers, 59 RBI and 33 runs scored in 78 games while earning $8.5 million. A right shoulder strain and fractured left foot sidelined him for more than half of the season.
Figure out where everyone fits
Versatility will define the Marlins next season with so many of their hitters able to play multiple positions on defense.
Villar, who profiles as a prototypical leadoff hitter, can play second base, shortstop, third base and corner outfield.
Miguel Rojas can play any of the four infield spots.
Brian Anderson can play third base or right field.
Jon Berti can play anywhere except first base or catcher.
“We’ll get to spring and get to see guys in different spots and then make sure we’re having conversations with guys and making sure they’re comfortable with what we’re thinking,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “But I think one of the things you’ll see with us is just a better, well-rounded club where we can rest guys, have a little more depth than we’ve had maybe on the bench in the past.
One thing is clear: The new additions do not bode well for Garrett Cooper.
Cooper, 28, posted a .281 batting average with 15 home runs and 50 RBI last season but missed 55 games with three separate injuries. He played in just 14 games in 2018 after being sidelined by a pair of wrist injuries. First base is Cooper’s primary position, but he can also play in the corner outfields. Aguilar is expected to get the bulk of Miami’s starts at first.
“I think the biggest problem is not knowing if we can count on him to stay on the field,” Mattingly said. “So we’ve had to kind of move in a direction that we’ve planned that he’s not on the field every day. He’s a big part of us moving forward but not necessarily the guy that we can pencil in for 150 games or 148 or something.”
Get a look at their prospects
A solid contingent of the Marlins’ top prospects are nearing the cusp of MLB debuts.
Among them: outfielders Monte Harrison and Jesus Sanchez; pitchers Sixto Sanchez, Nick Neidert, Edward Cabrera and Jorge Guzman; shortstop Jazz Chisholm; and first baseman Lewin Diaz.
All eight are on the Marlins’ 40-man roster and will get reps with the big-league club in spring training.
“Something that for me I look forward to,” Mattingly said, “is seeing the prospects that you’ve seen their names, you’ve seen them on video a little bit, watch them kind of progress through the minors, but then to get your eyes on them on a daily basis, see how they react with the other guys, seeing how their work ethic is, see what kind of attention to detail they have, how they’re handling the at-bats, the innings, whatever that is. It’s always a really good learning experience for myself and our staff.”
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